ma’am

Ma'am Magazine

Ma'Am Magazine, or Marc and Andrea Media, is an independent photojournalistic publication founded in Dublin, Ohio. It is printed and edited seasonally by Marc Jones and Andrea Rissing. The publication's aim is to evoke artistic and cultural awareness with a noticeable literary gonzo journalist slant.

Creation

The idea for Ma'am Magazine began in June 2004 when Jones published a collection of anecdotes on his now defunct blog. He asked friends to help him with editing, including Rissing. Rissing read a paragraph where Jones imagined traveling and publishing a photographic magazine with her, she insisted that it was a good idea and to pursue this dream as a side-career.

Material

Topics within Ma’am typically include community politics, interviews with emerging artists, analytical research, and idiosyncratic suggestions as to how one should live life. Ma’am attempts to abstain from articles on popular culture and news coverage dominated by the mass media. This has helped Ma'am acquire a cult following.

The cover story is almost always an anomaly to the rest of the publication. The expositive cover is allegedly rigid and objectively neutral, whereas everything else reads much more lax and narrated. In later issues that consistency diminished as the editors found greater success in spontaneous changeableness.

Publication

Because it is independently run, Ma'am is generally ad-free. Cost for production is inexpensive; the magazine’s copies averaged US$1.50 in 2004. Ma'am is not affiliated with any publishing house and usually relies on companies such as FedEx Kinko's, Staples, or "Any place that quotes [Ma'am] well," for production.

In October 2005, Ma'am Magazine began printing its issues in full color. The price incidentally rose and Ma'am's marginal profits began to diminish. Rissing selflessly made the executive decision because she felt that given the quality of the magazine's content, "it deserves color."

Misconception and bias

Despite its name, Ma'am Magazine isn't a feminist publication. Because of such assumptions, the magazine fails to effectively reach a male demographic. Furthermore, the name suggests a liberal slant within each press. Both Jones and Rissing acknowledge their liberal biases, stating that most printed media outlets have some form of bias and to hide it would be a disservice to their audience.